Tips

17 March 2006

Migraine fraud – one less

Do you remember the migraine scam we talked about back in January? Well, it looks like the owner of the site, Arthur Vanmoor, has been indicted by a Fort Lauderdale grand jury for selling fake cures for migraine and cancer. He’s been charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act violations. "Migraine Miracle" and the other products he tried to rip people off with are no longer allowed to be sold or promoted. It’s about time.

The scary thing is that this site was particularly easy to spot, and yet still people were sending in their money. It’s not that people are stupid – we can all be scammed, and there are much trickier sites out there ready to take your money. If someone tells you they have a cure for migraine, you’d better do your research. There are some great treatments – many people have been treated and are now migraine-free. But an overall cure for migraine? We’re still waiting for that one.

What’s wrong with your soda pop?

James Tips 3

Here’s an interesting success story that I just got from a HeadWay subscriber:

Thought maybe your readers would enjoy this bit of news. Recently my migraines started back up again to daily migraines and very strong in severity. They were so debilitating I almost couldn’t work anymore. For so long I was doing pretty good. I realized that what I had changed in my diet was soda everyday. I had gone back to work, and I was drinking a coke at lunch for the caffeine boost. I stopped drinking it, and in about 3 days my migraines were just about gone! What a relief. My husband said he had seen something on TV about drinking colored soda and how bad it is for you. The program said you should drink only "clear" sodas if you have to drink soda. (Clear like 7-UP, Sierra Mist etc.)

~Sandra from NY, USA

I’m not exactly sure about the stats on "colored soda". Could the report have something to do with the phosphoric acid? The caramel color? I’ve heard rumours on the caramel colour thing, but I’m waiting for more information. Anyone know anything about that?

Of course there are other things in soda pop that could trigger migraine, such as caffeine and that sudden infusion of sugar (or questions about aspartame in diet versions). Whatever it is, there’s growing evidence that some people are more sensitive than others. We need to pay attention to changes in our eating habits – a small thing can make a big difference.

28 February 2006

Healthy whole grain recipe

James Tips 0

Before all the triggers and migraine fighting foods and health supplements and vitamins, perhaps the best thing you can do to avoid headache and migraine is to eat a healthy, well balanced diet. Sure, but how do you do that? Well, try to keep your focus on foods as close to the source and unprocessed as possible. Keep the meats to a minimum. And eat everything in moderation.

When so many migraineurs also deal with stomach problems, it’s all the more important to make sure your diet is healthy. One thing that’s been a real help to me is making sure I get some decent healthy whole grains in my diet every morning (uh oh – is this starting to sound like a cereal commercial?). I use a granola recipe that is packed with migraine and headache fighting foods, including oatmeal and olive oil. I shared this recipe with HeadWay subscribers, and I thought I’d share it with the rest of you as well. All the details are in the recipe itself, which is in pdf format. Right click to download the Multigrain Granola recipe!

6 February 2006

Ginger for Mary Ann’s migraine

James Tips 0

Truly, this website has some of the best visitors in cyberspace, and the ezine HeadWay has some of the best readers. In January’s issue we talked about nausea, and many of you visited the HeadWay MailRoom with great feedback. And you very graciously pointed out a glaring omission in my article – the use of ginger for nausea. You didn’t call me names and demand an apology, instead you shared your experiences and some of the practical ways you’ve used ginger to make that migraine attack more bearable. For example, Faith from the USA suggested Preggy Pops (available in the USA, the UK and Australia and wherever amazon.com ships). Don’t worry, guys – you can buy Queasy Pops – doesn’t that sound more masculine?

To rub sea salt in my wound, I picked up the TIME magazine a few days ago which commented on a new study showing that ginger helped with post-operative nausea. I don’t know how I missed it. You must think I’ve been on a desert island all this time.

Anyway, you may have noticed a new page here – I’ve dedicated a whole article to the problem of nausea in migraine (and cluster and tension headache too). Perhaps to redeem myself, I wrote a lot about ginger, but there’s lots more there. This one is close to my heart, since I’ve had to deal with the worst of this symptom during migraine attacks.

So if you find yourself marooned with nausea, take the three minute migraine nausea tour. You don’t have to be a millionaire to find solutions.

2 February 2006

It takes 2, baby

James Tips 4

Recently I’ve had a little experience with migraine at the hospital. I’ve gained a whole new empathy and understanding for those who go to emergency with a migraine, and I’ve done a lot of new thinking on the pros and cons of the situation.

Upon reflection, here’s one thing which stood out. Certainly there were times when I felt like a lab rat being experimented on. "Let’s see if this works", "Let’s see if that works". Any migraineur who has been to the doctor more than once probably knows the feeling.

As a matter of fact, to my surprise at one time I found myself trying to put the brakes on the amount of drugs they were giving me. I actually had to ask when they had last given me drugs, and I suggested that perhaps I could wait a few more minutes before they pumped the next experiment into my blood stream (I know many of you have had the opposite experience, but stay with me here).

So here’s one thing the experience taught me, and you can tell me if you agree. It often takes two things to relieve a migraine attack. First, a migraine drug or painkiller can be helpful. Second, sleep. In particular, deep sleep.

Now you’ll often hear that part of the migraine cycle is deep sleep. But you may have also heard that deep sleep is itself a migraine antidote (see for example this article on migraine in children). If you take a drug and can’t get to sleep, the symptoms may stubbornly hang on. If you get to sleep without the drugs, (sometimes) the migraine symptoms are still there when you wake up.

So this was the problem at the hospital. The constant monitoring. Every few minutes, you’re asked to rate your pain, you’re asked how your stomach is, your blood pressure is taken, whatever. So you never reach that deep sleep, and the new drugs keep coming because the pain isn’t disappearing fast enough. May I humbly suggest to health workers with migraine patients that they try a natural therapy – a little sleep. 1.5-2 hours, or even less, may be all it takes to move you from getting worse or staying the same to improving. You may find this works at home too – if you wake up with a migraine attack, try taking your abortive drugs (perhaps with a little juice for blood sugar) and then getting another 1-2 hours of sleep.

It’s time for your comments. Is it just me, or is this an ingredient that’s being forgotten?